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Read one verse of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam with its Sanskrit, word meanings, translation and study points.

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Canto 1 · Creation · 19 chapters

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How to study this verse, in six steps
  1. 1Chant the verse. Say the Sanskrit slowly and carefully.
  2. 2Read the word meanings. Go through each Sanskrit word and its meaning.
  3. 3Find the meaning yourself. Before the translation, piece the meaning together from the words.
  4. 4Read the translation. Ask: what is the Lord teaching here, and how does it apply to my life?
  5. 5Read the purport slowly. Read it two or three times. Don't rush.
  6. 6Write down what touched you. Note the main points in your own notebook.
Read the full guide: how to hear the Bhāgavatam ›
Canto 1 · Chapter 19: The Appearance of Śukadeva Gosvāmī
1.19.371.19.39

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 1.19.38

Mukti· Liberation
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:King Parīkṣitsince 1.19.32inside 1 frame: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at Naimiṣāraṇya

यच्छ्रोतव्यमथो जप्यं यत्कर्तव्यं नृभि: प्रभो ।

स्मर्तव्यं भजनीयं वा ब्रूहि यद्वा विपर्ययम् ॥ ३८ ॥

yac chrotavyam atho japyaṁ

yat kartavyaṁ nṛbhiḥ prabho

smartavyaṁ bhajanīyaṁ vā

brūhi yad vā viparyayam

Translation

Please let me know what a man should hear, chant, remember and worship, and also what he should not do. Please explain all this to me.

Read this verse on Vedabase.io

This verse has no purport; its meaning is explained by the verses around it.

1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Ask What to Practice and Avoid

  1. 1

    The King asks what a person should hear and chant. He seeks clear guidance about these activities.

  2. 2

    He also asks what one should remember and worship. His inquiry includes both inner attention and worship.

  3. 3

    He asks what one should not do as well. Complete guidance includes both what to practice and what to avoid.

How it feels

Remorse and urgency → Surrender and inquiry. Seven days to live become the impetus for complete spiritual hearing.

Chapters 18–19 of Canto 1: Parīkṣit is cursed and welcomes Śukadeva. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 19: The Appearance of Śukadeva Gosvāmī

Parīkṣit accepts impending death, sits beside the Ganges, and asks Śukadeva Gosvāmī about perfection.

Back to this verse in chapter 1.19
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. yatwhatever
  2. śrotavyamworth hearing
  3. athothereof
  4. japyamchanted
  5. yatwhat also
  6. kartavyamexecuted
  7. nṛbhiḥby the people in general
  8. prabhoO master
3

Key ideas in this verse

The subject this verse serves and the themes it speaks of.

  • Mukti · Liberation

    What is real freedom for the soul? · Subject 9 of 10

  • Bhakti · Devotion and loving service

    How devotion reorganizes desire and action. · Theme in SB 1.19

    In this verse: “worship”

  • Kīrtana · Hearing and chanting

    Remembering the Lord through sacred sound. · Theme in SB 1.19

    In this verse: “chant”

  • Jñāna · Spiritual insight

    Inquiry, revelation and discrimination between self and matter. · Theme in SB 1.19

    In this verse: “inquiry”

4

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

Which needs clearer guidance in my life: hearing, chanting, remembering, worshiping or avoiding wrong actions?

Practice

Choose one of these areas and write a specific question you would like to ask about it.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

6

Śrīla Prabhupāda speaks

His recorded lectures on this verse, and the talks where he quotes it.

Quoted in 1 lecture. Recordings and transcripts on prabhupada.io.

Quoted in 1 lecture

In each of these he quotes this verse while speaking on another verse or subject. "Find the quote" opens the transcript at that spot.

Live this todayAsk What to Practice and AvoidThis verse's lesson: one practice and one question for today

Study points are short summaries, not the translation. Confirm them in the original text and purport on Vedabase.

Ask the BhāgavatamHave a question about SB 1.19.38? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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